A plan to establish a local version of the US’ Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) at the Ministry of National Defense was criticized yesterday during a legislative review, as lawmakers from across party lines said the plan would overlap with existing defense ministry functions and increase the risk of data leaks.
The ministry plans to establish a “defense science department” next year, which would be expanded to a “Taiwanese DARPA” one year later if the department operates smoothly, Department of Resources Planning Director Chen Cheng-chi (陳正棋) said during a question-and-answer session at the legislature’s Foreign and National Defense Committee.
The “Taiwanese DARPA” would direct the research, development and application of military technology by recruiting and partnering with professionals from non-military sectors in a bid to commercialize defense technology as part of the government’s goal to produce domestic aircraft and combat vessels, Chen said.
The ministry plans to request an annual budget of NT$3 billion (US$94.7 million) for the new agency to develop fighter jet and submarine technologies.
Lawmakers from across party lines questioned whether the proposed agency would overlap with existing ones, such as the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology, the Armaments Bureau and other research bodies under the ministry.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ma Wen-chun (馬文君) questioned whether any planned responsibilities of the “Taiwanese DARPA” could not be performed by the institute, a research facility formerly under the direction of the Armaments Bureau.
Institute president Chang Guan-chung (張冠群) said the “Taiwanese DARPA” would not have functions that the institute does not already have, but there would be personnel from non-military backgrounds to participate in the program.
“Is not the privatization of the institute meant to attract talent from the private sector? Why has the ministry asked for a NT$3 billion budget to establish the ‘Taiwanese DARPA’ to do what existing agencies are doing?” Ma said.
Minister of National Defense Feng Shih-kuan (馮世寬) said the plan is of “an experimental nature” and its feasibility needs to be evaluated before it can be officially launched, adding that the ministry would also evaluate the need to restructure existing agencies.
“What concerns us is whether the ‘Taiwanese DARPA’ is in fact a plan to merge different agencies. If that is the case, only the National Development Council is needed,” Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chiu Chih-wei (邱志偉) said.
DPP Legislator Liu Shih-fang (劉世芳) questioned if the involvement of non-military personnel in research projects would increase the risk of espionage, as Chinese spying activities in Taiwan have increased over the past five years.
The ministry has counterespionage measures in place and people suspected of espionage would be removed from their posts and put under surveillance, Feng said, adding that he would “kill himself” if he was abducted by Chinese agents.
Meanwhile, in response to the suicides of a sergeant at Penghu Defense Command on Thursday last week and a marine private on Sunday, Feng said their deaths were not caused by management issues.
The ministry has improved welfare and training procedures, so the suicides could not be blamed on officers’ leadership, Feng said, amid allegations that the deaths were caused by their supervisors’ overly strict management style.
Feng also reaffirmed the navy’s ability to escort Taiwanese fishing boats on long-distance trips, in response to KMT Central Policy Committee director Alex Tsai’s (蔡正元) remark that the ministry refused to dispatch vessels to rescue Taiwanese and other Asian hostages held by Somalian pirates.
“I do not know that the military ever refused [such a request], but it has the ability to escort fishing boats on a global scale,” he said.
LOUD AND PROUD Taiwan might have taken a drubbing against Australia and Japan, but you might not know it from the enthusiasm and numbers of the fans Taiwan might not be expected to win the World Baseball Classic (WBC) but their fans are making their presence felt in Tokyo, with tens of thousands decked out in the team’s blue, blowing horns and singing songs. Taiwanese fans have packed out the Tokyo Dome for all three of their games so far and even threatened to drown out home team supporters when their team played Japan on Friday. They blew trumpets, chanted for their favorite players and had their own cheerleading squad who dance on a stage during the game. The team struggled to match that exuberance on the field, with
UPDATED TEST: The new rules aim to assess drivers’ awareness of risky behaviors and how they respond under certain circumstances, the Highway Bureau said Driver’s license applicants who fail to yield to pedestrians at intersections or to check blind spots, or omit pointing-and-calling procedures would fail the driving test, the Highway Bureau said yesterday. The change is set to be implemented at the end of the month, and is part of the bureau’s reform of the driving portion of the test, which has been criticized for failing to assess whether drivers can operate vehicles safely. Sedan drivers would be tested regarding yielding to pedestrians and turning their heads to check blind spots, while drivers of large vehicles would be tested on their familiarity with pointing-and-calling
Whether Japan would help defend Taiwan in case of a cross-strait conflict would depend on the US and the extent to which Japan would be allowed to act under the US-Japan Security Treaty, former Japanese minister of defense Satoshi Morimoto said. As China has not given up on the idea of invading Taiwan by force, to what extent Japan could support US military action would hinge on Washington’s intention and its negotiation with Tokyo, Morimoto said in an interview with the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) yesterday. There has to be sufficient mutual recognition of how Japan could provide
A Taiwanese man apologized on Friday after saying in a social media post that he worked with Australia to provide scouting reports on Taiwan’s team, enabling Australia’s victory in this year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC), saying it was a joke and that he did not hold any position with foreign teams or Taiwan’s sports training center. Chen Po-hao (陳柏豪) drew the rage of many Taiwan baseball fans when he posted online on Thursday night, claiming credit for Australia’s 3-0 win over Taiwan in the opening game for Pool C, saying he worked as a physical therapist with the national team and
RSS